


the things that love destroys.

by tevinterr



Category: Dragon Age (Video Games), Dragon Age: Inquisition
Genre: F/M, Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-02-01
Updated: 2015-02-01
Packaged: 2018-03-10 01:21:50
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,041
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3271535
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/tevinterr/pseuds/tevinterr
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>"don’t," she warns, having met his eyes in the mirror’s broken reflection. dorian’s brow furrows with concern and he ignores the warning, continuing his approach.</p>
<p>"what has he done to you?"</p>
            </blockquote>





	the things that love destroys.

as a loud, albeit muffled crash startles dorian as he makes his way through the throne room, he drops the book cullen has just finished lending him as instinct takes over, his pace quickening as he jogs to the end of the expansive chamber to the farthest door on the left. ignoring the whispers of the other surprised patrons in the room, he pushes the door open with one hand and walks through it with half a mind to tell one of the stewards not to let anyone else through if he does not come out — until he remembers he is one of two skyhold residents allowed into this particular room unannounced, and he distinctly recalls the other one dragging himself to the rotunda late the night before, alone.

as he makes his way through the open hallway leading to the inquisitor’s chambers, he thinks of the first time he made this trip — she had turned the door to her chambers to ashes in her anger, not once shedding a tear as she stood there at the entryway, glaring at him. he had not taken it personally, he knew her fury had not been directed at him, and he had left without a word, only to return hours later after she had calmed with the carpenter and a new door in tow.

their friendship had seemed so natural considering their rough start — a tevinter mage and a dalish elf, they were not exactly a match made in heaven. still, he had always admired her strength, her ambition, how supportive she had been when dealing with his father, and how she had not once been anything more than accepting of him. no, it had been more than that — who he was, that one singular trait of his that had all his life been considered an affliction, a setback — she had never cared, it had never been an issue. dorian had never experienced that before and it had been as jarring as it had been refreshing.

"wyn?" he asks as he approaches her door, raising a hand to knock. when she does not answer, he reaches for the door handle and pushes it open before climbing the stone steps to her chamber.

"not now, dorian," wynona replies as he reaches the top of the stairs — she has her back to him, her gaze fixated on a broken full-sized mirror in front of her. the first thing he notices is her hand, bruised and bloody, held clenched at her side as she stands hovering over shards of reflective glass on the floor. the remaining pieces of the mirror still in their frame are what draws his attention to her face, pale and empty — the dalish markings are gone.

"don’t," she warns, having met his eyes in the mirror’s broken reflection. dorian’s brow furrows with concern and he ignores the warning, continuing his approach.

"what has he done—"

” _don’t_ ,” she repeats. her voice is shaky, he can hear the cracks in it, feel the tension in her entire body, trembling with fury, as he wraps his arms around her tightly.

"I said  _don’t_ ,” wynona cries, reaching up to grab one of his arms as if to pry it away. he feels her give in almost the moment his chest meets her back and knows how she feels all too well — it is the kind of anger, the kind of hurt that is palpable. he knows she has told him to keep his distance because she does not want to feel, but he also knows that not feeling is more destructive.

he knows because he once did the same to her, told her to keep her distance, told her that he did not want to care about what she had thought of the letter — she had no right to tell him, no right to intervene, to bring him to the tavern in redcliffe even though he had agreed willingly. had he known he would have been meeting his father face to face, would he still have agreed? he remembers feeling angry at her at first, furious — it had not been her choice to make, it had not been her call.

though dorian would be a liar if he said he would not let her do it again if given the chance.

he feels wynona’s knees buckle and, as he sinks to the ground with her, not once releasing his embrace, he realizes this is the first time he has seen her cry. her hands grip his arms tighter now not out of reluctance but rather as if he is the only thing tethering her — to let go she would risk never getting back up.

"don’t," she whispers over and over, her voice strained, her tears hot on his forearms. "don’t."

minutes go by for what feels like hours, though the light in the room has barely changed by the time dorian feels wynona’s body begin to relax, her breaths still shaky though no longer ragged. his chest aches for her, but he cannot say he never saw this coming — as much as he wanted and as much as he felt she deserved a happy ending for once, he had never had one himself, so who was he really to hope for something he has never known? still, after all she and solas had been through… perhaps he thought too highly of the hedge mage.

wynona heaves a wistful, uneven sigh, shaking him from his thoughts. he tears his gaze from the balcony window and looks down at her, hesitating a moment before lifting a hand to soothingly brush stray strands of hair from her face. without the markings, the flecks of carmine in the amber of her eyes stood out much stronger, the freckles on her nose much starker.

"dorian, he— solas—"

"I know."

wynona pauses for a moment and, in her eyes, dorian can see her struggling with her words before she murmurs in a somber whisper:

"I love him."

it is dorian’s turn to sigh — he tucks his hand beneath her chin, tilting her face upwards and forcing her to meet his gaze.

"then I will hate him for you," he replies sincerely, succinctly. "until you are ready to do so on your own."


End file.
